One of my weird google searches turned up this little project. Looks like the big images are broken on the site, but all the important files actually exist. [Doria] combined a window shade with solar power and EL cells to create one hacked window shade. It’ll charge up during the day and the EL cells that cover it can be activated day or night to give your room that extra funky glow.
19 thoughts on “Solar Powered EL Window Light/shade”
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a hacked window shade….eh? must be a REALLY slow week for good hacks—-
Mr. Jones, if that is your _real_ name…
Show a little respect here man, these people did something very hard today. They gave up their dreams, for US. For a brief moment there, I bet they were ecstatic with the chance to finally pursue knitting needle hacks.
Alas they gave in to what was “P.C.”, what was “easier”…instead of the challenging and also rewarding world of new and exciting hacks with knitting needles, they went back to ordinary, drab everday hacks.
I for one, am sad to see their dream die so quickly, may this window shade hack bring a little of the light that was lost today, back into their lives.
~Toxic
I think this is actually pretty cool. Looked a little boring at first, but I can see how this would be a cool hack.
Mr. Jones. so do you have a hack that you want to show us or are you just gona criticize ?
Hey, they hacked a WINDOW SHADE. have you ever looked at a window shade and though, “How could I hack this?” Probably not. And even if you did, you most likely said, “Can’t be done.”
Anytime you can take the mundane and make it into something else that is either practical, marketable or just damn cool – that’s a great hack!
bootlickers! nobody likes Mr Jones when he hands out the critical….but everyone loves Mr Jones when he hands out the praise. DO I HAVE A HACK??? why YES as a matter of fact…a 6 foot tall robot with 3 tracked 2-segment legs, 2 arms each with 5 digits (1 opposable thumb), day/night vision and artificial intelligence including emotional response and free-will! thats MY hack and you will undoubtedly see it later on this summer on HAD (i have discussed it with Will and he is waiting for the website—-Which ive not had time to build yet because im so busy on the freaking robot). Of course you wont believe me without a LINK anyway—but feel welcome to find my robot on myspace (his mane is AHG95WW1FPH8U) or, if you want to chat with my robot online use AIM and IM AHG95WW1FPH8U and you can chat with his AI software. While you people hack 1 dead stereo into a preamp or 1 window shade into a hacked window shade and pat each other on the back for it…..i am hacking 20 stereos, 4 computers, 18 VCRs, 6 DVD players, 2 full size office copiers, 20+ R/C cars, and a whole STACK of assorted toys, video games, and electronics into 1 robot with artificial feelings!!!
TOXIC…if THAT is YOUR_REAL_NAME…..why dont you show us some of your hacks or give us some info on what YOU are working on these days. I personally dont care what you think about what i think……and for the record…..I THINK HACKING A WINDOW SHADE GETS 4 OUT OF A POSSIBLE 10 STARS.
Why only 4 stars? BECAUSE ITS A FREAKING WINDOW SHADE WITH LIGHTS ADDED TO IT!!!!! Im not knocking it down a peg….im knocking it up! Sure its cool when you make the ordinary and mundane into something practical, marketable, or just plain cool–(hack a window shade with a dirtbike to keep the dirt and sun out of your face and ill be impressed—-hack a window shade back into a window shade and im not so much) but window shade becomes window shade with lights is NONE of those things.
I said the same thing when they added Bluetooth Lights to the bridge in London…..its been done and i dont find it any more impressive than shoving a toothbrush up a plastic dolls butt and calling Polly Pearly Whites! people have added motors and lights and all manner of interesting things to window shades and bridges and overpasses WAY too many times in the past for me to consider it anything but childs play and far-from-interesting. Pull this string and the shade goes up….pull that string and it goes down…its bollox and only the EASILY AMUSED find this kind of HACK (it IS a hack—i will give it that) interesting.
Of course some of you think its cool….as it should be. And ALSO as it should be not everyone is going to share your feelings. If our opinions on this hack differ, I apologize. But my opinion remains the same.
Must be a slow week for hacks. Dont worry though; people like Mary Masterson and MAKE and ENGADGET and even Will Obrien are what keeps this site alive…although even they cannot keep up with the demand for a HACK A DAY. nobody can. so one has slow days….and sometimes even slow weeks.
this is one of them. dont get your nickers in a twist because i have pointed out its a slow week. I have faith in Will and i know the best is yet to come from this site.
unfortunately this hack didnt blow my skirt up and make my dingleberry fotch go pucker twill. sue me.
mr jones, I disagree.
I think this is a perfectly good hack, and talking about some robot really does not prove your point as to how this isn’t a good hack.
ok how about the fact that ITS A WINDOW.
does that drive my point home enough for ya?
hang a lightbulb in your window with solar cells and yippee youre on hackaday?!?! WTF????
oh great, we have a new troll.
“We weren’t able to find a ” AHG95WW1FPH8U ” on MySpace.com”
looks like your robot isn’t on myspace, mr jones.
anyway, so you built a robot? thats what you wanted to build. this person built a light into a window shade. thats what they wanted to do. and it is a lot more original than “hey look, i build (another) robot!”
i like this hack because its original, and is designed with a purpose in mind!
Awesome hack… i like it alot… imagine these installed on a few windows in your house… you could have somthing close to daylight all night..
even with very efficient solar panels, I can’t imagine them storing enough power to light the thing for any significant amount of time.
Actually i would never say “hey look, i build (another) robot!” because that is how cavemen talk.
me tarzan! big tree! i build robot!
idiot…..thank you for proving my point—and the fact that you cant find my robot on myspace just reinforces that fact. to be perfectly honest i dont care if you find it on myspace or not.
i dont care what you think about what i think. but most of all i dont care about you……..
i think this hack sucks. im not saying its not a hack (ive said that before about other hacks) as this is obviously “hackworthy”….but only moderately so in my opinion…..i just think its elementary-very 101ish.
but, man….you people are something else! a guy comes along and gives you his opinion (thats what comments are all about, right?) and you people attack him and call him a troll?!?! and you then turn right around and effectively call this same guy a liar when you cant seem to find something on myspace without a roadmap?!?!
Dude….you guys need to get laid.
So i didnt like THIS hack…..now all of a sudden I am everything but a white boy!
Alright…..thats cool…..you people go on then and be the big hackaday justice league if you like. put me in my place if it gives you pleasure…..
i still think its just stupid lights in a stupid window. HEY! ive got an idea! it can be tomorrows new hack!
we will call this one FLASHLIGHT IN THE DASHBOARD!!!! yes its true you can put a flashlight on your dashboard and you wont need the vanity light over the mirror anymore!!! (might as well—-you people will all call it cool if i include a schematic of the flashlight and pictures of how i stuck it in place with hot glue!~!!)
Yeah……u guys find lighted windows cool…..but im the lying troll…..gotcha. if you like lighted window displays…go to any drive thru menu or downtown shopping area and youll be in HACK_HEAVEN!!
hehehe you people tickle me!
cool hack! would love to try this in my home.
@peter: http://www.myspace.com/AHG95WW1FPH8U
there’s the link to the myspace “mr. jones” says is his. Not sure if it is his or not though…
Mr. Jones:
don’t cry and whine when people don’t like what you have to say about a project. Like you said, “a guy comes along and gives you his opinion (thats what comments are all about, right?)” That’s their opinion of you, just like your opinion of the hack. I think it’s a great hack. You don’t. They don’t like the way you responded to the hack, and so they can show their opinion about you.
Um…yeah that my robot AHG—but again…..I dont care if you believe it is or not.
And whats not to like about the way i responded? Mr Obrien even said when he posted it that he found it doing a google search—-Its not like any of the people who attacked me personally actually can claim any credit for having done the project—-why attack a stranger for saying “Must be a really slow week for hacks” when youre not involved in producing the hack? i never attacked anyone. i never called it a BAD hack. But now ive been called a liar and a troll.
So this is the audience this site caters to? Maybe i wont put my robot up for you idiots after all.
then again…..maybe i will just so you can all lick my boots too.
And if its just too cool to slander folks in here…..my opinion of you is that youre all a bunch of ninnies who cannot figure out which orifice is your arse, much less which hack is worthy and which isnt. None of you would know a good hack if it came up and bit you on the nose, and i hope all of you commenters who think this is a good hack come down with leprosy and have horrible flesh eating diseases for the rest of your miserable stupid days.
I am so geigh that I love my own poop.
@ will
thats odd, i typed that link into myspace to see if it was there yesterday and myspace said it didn’t exist
@ mr jones
sorry for the typo, but it doesn’t mean i’m a caveman. myspace said that the page didn’t exist after i typed it in exactly the same as the link will gave, searched for the name, searched for it in name, email and display name fields and came up with nothing. notice how i said ‘looks like its not on there’ not ‘it isn’t on there’. sorry if seemed like i was calling you a lier, but i wasn’t. neither was i attacking you, i was just saying that i couldn’t find it.
im a biochemist (phd student), not an engineer (though my father is an m.e.) so im no expert on this stuff. still, it seems to me that everyone must start somewhere. this may seem like a basic hack to some, but to others it may seem very cool and – perhaps more importantly? – very tractable. i think its important that we encourage less skilled individuals to attain higher levels of knowledge and ability. showing them a simple hack like this (something they can understand and do) will accomplish exactly that.
i dont think mr jones is a liar or anything else. but i also dont think this is a poor hack. in any field (speaking from my experience in bio), those of us who can do more should be patient with those who can do less so that one day they too will be able to do more.
besides, its only natural that the higher you get in a field the less equal company you will have. you should expect to be lonely and unimpressed when you reach the top.
this isnt directed at anyone in particular (not even mr jones), its just a general thought that has helped me to be more patient with some of my students. i think everyone can benefit from this mindset.
p.s. i think its cool.
Peace guys, don’t argue with eachother in this way you all (including almost everybody) act like a bunch of girls. (and believe me im a woman, so I can tell…)
It’s not the hardship in the work that makes a good hack or not. Some find it in electronics, fine with me and I feel happy about their successes cause I blew up every single electronical board they gave me in Physics classes.
Others find it in chemistry or programming, well if they find joy in it, great for them.I seek hacks in taxlaws, boring that is totaly true, but usefull cause it saves loads of money for companies.
Before any of you attacks another for having the most IDIOT hack you could ever imagine (but apparently didn’t otherwise you would have made it), it’s the idea that lies behind it.
Next to that, a stupid thing as a paperclip or a post-it made several people milionaire…So you never know, people are strange beings if there is a market for it and it sells, this ‘weird’ hack with light might be making more money then a robot (where there lies a risk that another guy has beaten you before and has all the rights for producing this hack).
Time will tell if a hack is good or not good, it’s up to the buyers market to tell and not us. Maybe someday the guy with the lousiest hack could be your investor…
Peace, out…